Broadband News Story

BT Italy CEO forced to resign

Corrado Sciolla, the boss for BT’s Continental European department is to finally step down due to an ongoing scandal.

Shares in BT have declined by 18% after it was revealed that this ongoing dilemma would cost much more than the initial £145m.

There are also concerns that the scandal could have an effect on BT profits over the next two years.

An investigation found that numbers were being manipulated through inaccurate purchases, sales, leasing and factoring transactions.

What has taken place has resulted in a false inflation in earnings for BT in Italy.

Mr Corrado has been CEO of BT Italy since 2006, his position also expanded to include France. He became the president of BT’s Continental Europe operation in January 2013. As well as the problems that BT is having in Italy, things are not looking too great for international corporate markets and the UK public sector.

BT is now expecting a loss in revenue as a result of recent events. They are also predicting profit loses for 2018. As soon as trading opened, BT’s shares started to fall, and by early afternoon they had plummeted by 18%. BT was the first business owned by the state to be privatised under Margaret Thatcher’s government. They have more than one million small shareholders.

Equity analyst for Hargreaves Lansdown George Salmon stated: “This is another huge blow to the group; BT is £6.6bn in debt after the acquisition of EE. This is the last thing they need.”

Accusations of “inappropriate behaviour” with BT Italy came about in summer and an investigation was conducted in October.

Gavin Patterson, chief executive for the BT group stated: “We are very disappointed with what is taking place in our Italian location.”

“We are conducting a thorough investigation into what has happened; we want to ensure that our customers, employees, and stakeholders understand that we are dedicated to ensuring the highest standards in terms of the services that we provide.”